Murmansk ( ; ; ; ) is a city and the administrative center of Murmansk Oblast, Russia. It serves as a seaport and is located in the extreme northwest part of Russia, on the Kola Bay, 12 km from the Barents Sea on the northern shore of the Kola Peninsula, not far from Russia's borders with Norway and Finland. Population: Despite its rapidly declining population, Murmansk remains the largest city north of the Arctic Circle.